Early spring's dream
by xXChaos.Angel-ChanXx
Summary: a story i'd done for english; enjoy. claire/sylar


Caitlyn Boufford

Character: 93-year-old

Setting: Early Spring

Location: Café

Theme: Something found

Actual Character: Claire Bennet & Gabriel 'Sylar' Gray from Heroes. Claire has the ability of regeneration and Gabriel the ability to acquire other peoples ability either physically or emotionally.

_They were a family; demented and misshapen but they were still a family. _

She was still little when she figured out that she was a foster child; only ten or eleven. It was only a few years later when she figured out she wasn't normal. The only time when she was really sick was when she was still a baby; after that, she stopped getting sick altogether. Not a skinned knee, not a bloody nose; not even a broken bone.

It makes her think if she wasn't ever really and truly normal. Was she born this way? Could she survive the deadliest of diseases without fear of death? Claire Bennet's thoughts had rung out in her head; she was the cheerleader that started this whole mess. From being the cheerleader that needed to be saved to the girl that jumped off the fairest wheel but those things weren't what got her noticed first. It was her real mother.

When Claire was still with her real mother; she was only still an infant. She survived a fire that would have killed any normal child. The company that tracked people like her and her mother had noticed her mother's ability and quickly separated the two of them. Claire wasn't a danger to the world around her. Her ability was only to regenerate while her real mother's ability was much more dangerous.

So Claire wondered if it was really her fault for being noticed or was it her mother's? There are so many questions that have been left unanswered and even with years of aging and experiencing things her questions are still left unanswered.

When Claire first figured out she was special was when she was cleaning the dishes. Being the forgetful teenager Claire was, she had forgotten to take off her ring and the ring promptly fell into the garbage disposal once it was properly lubricated. There was no right logic in Claire's brain other then the fact that her foster father; Noah, had paid a lot of money to buy something like that for her. Before Claire could rethink the idea of reaching down the drain her hand was already in motion.

It hurt like hell but she had gotten the ring; Claire pulled her hand out of the drain to see her horribly disfigured hand. Claire's brain was in shock and numb from the disgusting sight before her. Her mouth didn't even open to alert her mother and didn't even make a sound as she watched her fingers crack and reform as if nothing really happened. The only dead giveaway was the fact that her hand and the ring were still covered in blood. It was shocking and disturbing to say in the least but Claire's morbid fascination began to grow.

What were her limits? If Claire cut off a limb, would it need to be reattached or would the limb re-grow itself altogether? The most important question to Claire was after she answered most of her questions by pushing herself to her limits, cutting off her baby toe which re-grew itself. The question that plagued Claire was could she save lives. Could Claire make people that have been paralyzed, have cancer or have some kind of mental or physical disorder better?

When Claire seen herself as a walking miracle for people that could and wanted to be saved; people that feared her ability, feared anyone like her came after her. Her dad, the one that raised Claire her whole life knew about her ability and was working for the people that wanted her caught. He never turned her over instead he could his best as a dad to protect her and Claire was thankful for him; he was a major part of who she was now.

Fearless, noble and stubborn like he look could in the face of death and not be killed even though he was just a normal man with no abnormal abilities. He and four other people gave their life for hers; Claire's real mother was the first to die. Her ability to create fire in the palms of her hands was her demise all because of a lonely and traumatized man was looking for absolution.

A man that played a huge role in Claire's life; he was the murderer of her real father as well. Her real father; Nathan, was a flawed man as well but just before he was killed he had come to terms with that and she was happy that he had. The lonely man had come to terms with himself as well. He spoke to his real father and spoke to her dad; the man along with a woman that created electricity in her hands, they were the cause of his mental break. He was known by most people that were special as his persona 'Sylar'.

Her dad could never trust him and Claire thought the same thing as well; this lonely man was the cause of her pain. He hunted her for three years of her life; killing person after person to get closer and closer to her before he finally got a hold of her, taking her ability. He explained to Claire that she was special; the most special in fact. He could not take her ability completely even if he wanted to. So he took her ability to feel pain; the only thing that made Claire feel human.

This man, her dad, her grandmother; Angela, and her uncle; Peter, they were her protectors for most of her life after people from the government became aware of people like them. Her dad was the third to go; killed in the line of duty Claire supposed. They had been separated; one car led the federal agent's in one direction to keep them from having her. They killed him as soon as they figured out he was a decoy; there was no time for her to save him because they kept running.

Claire wept on the shoulder of her enemy for the first time and she wasn't disgusted with herself. No one that was left had judged her; Angela and Peter the family of her father and employer of her dad. Even though they all had right to hate the man that killed Nathan no one did anymore. He seemed to be grateful for that and he himself said nothing as he let her weep on his shoulder as they drove away in terror.

The next to go was Angela. They were held up in a small house when it suddenly became a fire fight and the next thing Claire knew Angela was lying on the ground bleeding out. Claire was helpless to save Angela even though her blood could save her. Angela told Claire with a fond expression in her glazed eyes to go to a small town tucked away in the French country side. There was a cottage that was far away from any people, lots of food and lots of money for emergencies.

Claire can still remember Angela's expression so vividly even with the chaos around her; even when Peter and her enemy were pulling her away. For several years after that, it was hard to forget that face and the nightmares that made Claire wake up in a cold sweat. The first time she woke up like that, the person she'd least expected came to her aid. Her enemy, Gabriel Gray or as he use to call himself Sylar.

Peter had been exhausted from driving and they had stopped at a motel for the night. They all shared one room. Claire being the girl got a bed and Peter being the most tired out of all of them got his own bed; Gabriel seemed willing to sleep on the couch opposite to both beds so no one spoke about the sleeping arrangements. Claire doesn't remember how many times she woke up that night alone but she knew he had been the one to keep her quiet for Peter's sake. Claire silently wept as he held her, there was so much blood and death and destruction around her; when would it come to an end.

Gabriel, Peter and Claire all shared the ability of regeneration; Gabriel from taking it from her and Peter only had to simply touch one of them to have this ability. That was his downfall; in a last ditch effort to protect her Gabriel had ordered Peter and Claire to run. Peter switched his abilities out by one simple touch of Gabriel's arm before Peter took Claire into his arms. Giving one last look at Gabriel's face as they flew away; leaving Gabriel to die. Claire hardly believed that he'd die but she did believe that they would capture him and experiment on him until he would wish he could be dead.

It was several hours later that Peter got caught; Claire would have gotten caught to but Peter pleaded with her to run so she had. Peter switched his ability's and before Claire realized she had to save him she heard gun shots ring out in the distance.

It had been several years since Angela died, the woman herself was on her last legs; she'd been sixty-seven. Claire was thirty that placed Peter and Gabriel at least in their early to late forties. After that She was sixty when Peter died; placing both Peter and Gabriel in their nineties.

Claire wondered to herself if Peter's real age came to be before he was gunned down and whether or not it was a mercy killing because he appeared to be so old. Claire thinks about this as she sits in her favorite café in the small town that Angela recommended her to go to along time ago.

It had been twenty-five years of being a shut in until all the food in storage was gone and she felt the need to leave the cottage for food and knew clothing; holding onto the hope civilization had forgotten who she was.

To Claire's greatest desires they had; the town barely noticed she existed. Claire went into stores with cash and came out with dried goods and new clothing. Claire made sure that she was untraceable; taking strange short cuts through the town to get to places without multiple sets of eyes watching her every move. The only place she went to and actually spent most of her time was at the book store and the small café on the busiest corner of the town.

The downtown area was where the tourist visited most often whether or not they were staying a night or just passing through. Claire always came early in the morning, which was a pain in the early spring; with the cold, miserable winter finally releasing its frigid grasp on the tiny town. But there was still the unmistakable chilly breeze that Claire could taste on her tongue and feel on her collarbone.

There were the bitter attitudes and foul moods; and the obvious frozen water from the melting snow that made it impossible to walk on the tiny sidewalks. If it weren't for the trees and flowers in the small town that were just beginning to bloom were very beautiful; colouring the landscape with various shades of pink. If it weren't for the blossoms, Claire wouldn't have warmed up to the idea of staying so long in this town even though she had a nice home and a lovely café that had the most wonderful tea; the blossoms kept her here.

Claire sat at a table outside of the café on their patio as she usually did and it took the waiter a little longer then usual to notice her. They usually spot her right away as they did almost every time Claire came for her tea and breakfast. She always ordered the same thing so there was no need for words to be exchanged. Claire liked to have her silence so early in the morning as she watched the towns people prepare for the throngs of public to come flowing into the area.

The sun's morning rays trickled in over top the buildings and into the streets blinding her momentarily before she noticed the waiter place her meal and hot tea in front of her. Eating the meal in silence it wasn't long before she had a view of the buildings on the opposite side of the street that had become silhouette and almost picturesque; but Claire wasn't an artist.

Isaac was an artist and his abilities reflected that in him; maybe if Claire started painting she'd suddenly have that ability she mused. Matt Parkman went on a spirit walk or so she heard through Peter and…Gabriel... The policemen went on a spirit walk and found his destiny to find the speedster and remember what love was before she later died and he found the love he had for his wife and child…

"So… I wonder if I'll have to go on a spirit walk." Claire chuckled to herself before she finished her meal. She stood up placing her money for the meal and the tip for the waiter. "A spirit walk to the art store." Claire murmured to herself before she turned and headed to the little store not to far away; hopefully she didn't slip on the frosty walkway.

It was almost four years into painting before Claire decided she was going to give it up for good. When she began painting in seemed like a good idea; something to keep her attention occupied, her hands busy and her mind at ease. It seemed like at good idea the entire first year of taking up the hobby. Claire bought books on the basics of brush strokes, colour blending and what techniques would be good for what kind of scene she was painting.

The one on going theme was the view outside of the average sized window; the view was of a field full of cherry trees. This farm always seemed to have a different assortment of things growing and it was always a beautiful landscape to paint but her brush and hand seemed to always mess it up. During the time frame of the second and third year she decided that she'd continue to try even though her thoughts were on the fact that Claire was meant to be physically active not imaginatively.

Claire wished she was other people before but her imagination never went that far from her person when she thought that. She's wished to be someone else but she could never imagine being anyone else but herself. By the fourth year she found herself staring out the window at a the cherry tree field in the middle of the spring. Her hand and paint brush were at the ready but her mind was elsewhere.

Claire was thinking about how long she'd have to wait before people would forget about her completely; wonder about how long she'd have to wait to act like a normal person… It seemed like a second to her that time seemed to stop; that she was running towards the field across the way. The cherry trees were taller then she'd imagined them to be from her kitchen window but there wasn't enough time to gush at the trees something was in the field; it was calling her.

Running her way through the tall, sturdy trees Claire had seen the back of a figure that was so foreign yet so familiar. So she reached out to turn them around but suddenly she was lurching backwards into awareness. Claire rubbed her eyes only to notice the texture of dried paint on her fingertips and palms. Claire blinked her eyes in confusion before looking at the canvas in awe; the flowers, the person and her hand reaching out.

"Was I dreaming?" Claire asked herself before getting up and leaving the painting in the kitchen; going upstairs for some urgent need for rest. For the next three years Claire remained indoors, only going out for food, fresh canvas and paint. The canvases were calling to her and Claire painted various things, objects to people. They were all people that she knew to be dead and gone and objects that she remembered owning like the teddy bears her dad bought her.

Seeing the dead almost made her stop until Claire started painting the mysterious figure again; she'd painted him every so often. She'd never see his face, only his silhouette in a body of people; airports, convenience stores, driving cars, sometimes in dark places too. Dark places that made Claire think that he was someone she hadn't seen in a very long time.

"Gabriel…" Claire whispered as she touched the freshly painted canvas. It was black, a silhouette of a man in a door frame. Maybe he's fallen back on his 'Sylar' persona again it because wouldn't be the first time. Shaking her head as she stood up and went into the kitchen. Opening the fridge to grab the carton of milk before putting the open fold to her mouth. Claire quickly closed the container and put it away before turning to leave but she never got that far.

Claire's eyes were drawn towards the open window; she had relocated since she had first started painting things she saw in her mind. The first time she painted what she saw in her mind; the first time scared her the most. If it was Gabriel why wouldn't he come see her, maybe he truly had fallen back on his Sylar persona. After that thought Claire stopped painting for awhile; not starting up again until the urge to put paintbrush to canvas was too strong to bear.

The day when the urge became painful had been her ninety-third birthday. Thirty-three years into hiding and still no word from Gabriel; not even a single person staring at her oddly even though Claire should look much older then she does. A ninety-three-year-old woman stuck in a seventeen-year-old body; it did have its perks but living normally wasn't one of them.

Rolling out of bed seemed to have such urgency that morning that getting properly dressed didn't seem necessary and before Claire knew it. She had a paintbrush in hand and she had fallen into the hypnotic trance that she always did. It was sometime later that she had woken up only to see that the canvas had two branches from the cherry trees wrapped in pale blue paper and there was a tag addressed to her on it. No figures, no objects from her past, her people from her past; just the branches.

Sighing in annoyance Claire didn't think much about the painting and instead thinks she too tired to make herself something to eat so early in the morning. Looking at the clock on the coffee table she decides on getting dressed and going to the café for some breakfast and something special since it was her birthday. Suiting up in a large turtle neck sweater, blue jeans and a pair of boots plus an over coat Claire felt herself ready to go out in the chilly spring morning.

The morning had started out to be a beautiful albeit a little slow and confusing due to the painting but the scenery outside made up for it. The blues of the sky and the multi-coloured rays of sun streaming through the pine trees that resided next to the country side road she took to go in and out of town. It had been a long winter this time around; the pine trees were still full of snow that was slowly starting to melt.

This time that she took to walk into town gave her time to reflect on what she was still doing in this town and where her life was headed. She reflects on the time she spent with her makeshift family and as demented and misshapen as it was they still loved each other. Her foster family; her mother and brother who she barely knew but she still loved and her dad the man that her protected from everything.

Her biological family; Nathan her father, Peter her uncle and Angela her grandmother. Even though they lived in close quarters for a long part of their lives Claire felt as if she knew them but yet she didn't. She only knew the part of them that reflected their protective and self-sacrificing face; not their comfortable and relaxed selves. Though they did share some great times the bad times over shadowed them.

Which makes her think about the supposed boogeyman Gabriel; that man was something of a mystery. So easily manipulated and yet has too strong of a will to be controlled; he wanted to be special and yet he wants to be normal. Claire often thinks of him as a rubix cube, annoying and tricky to figure out a pattern or at least something to go on.

Claire is pulled out of her thoughts when she feels the pavement under her feet become a bit more difficult to walk on. She furrows her brow in realization that she had already made it into town and was almost at the café. 'Thinking about him seems to waste her time away' she thinks as she cautiously made her way down the little eroding sidewalk; trying to not slip and fall on the slick walkway.

People are moving about as if it's just any other day and in truth it is just that. Another day marked on the calendar; another day closer to summer or at least some warm weather. Claire arrives at the patio and considers sitting alone in silence but today was a new day and anything was possible; like living a normal life. With that thought in mind Claire enters the small café and spots a small unoccupied table in the corner closest to the furthest wall; right in the back.

Keeping that spot in mind she turns to the counter and smiles at the employee behind the cash register. "Hello miss, it's the usual I presume?" The petite girl chirped cheerfully; Claire smiled fondly as she remembered herself to be just as she was. "Good morning and no, I think I'll be having something a bit different…" She trailed off, mulling over her choices before she notices the baked goods on the counter top.

"I'll have some large pancakes with strawberries, strawberry sauce and whipped cream; and I was wondering what kind of pie that is." She said pointing to the glass tray on the counter top; the gob smacked girl barely stuttered her reply. "It's cherry pie, miss." Claire's smile widened, "Good, I'll have a slice with whipped cream on top." The girl nodded noticing Claire's good mood, "And what will you have to drink?"

Claire mused on what she wanted but then shrugged, "I'll stick to the usual tea." The girl nodded and totaled up Claire's bill, "What's with the change?" The girl asked receiving an odd look from Claire. "I mean, you've had a 'usual' ever since I've worked here so I was just wondering what's with the sudden change." Claire shrugged as she took off her over coat. "I thought it's best I did some changing and besides" She paused with a smile, "It's my birthday." The girl congratulated her before Claire told the petite girl that she would be sitting in the back instead of outside.

The girl nodded as she went to fix Claire's order while Claire wandered into the back of the café admiring the art work and photos hanging on the walls as she did. There were pictures of the owners, of the late forties; of the people enjoying themselves and of people dancing. She got to the back of the store and placed her coat on the back of the chair closest to the window before sitting down herself.

She wanted to be happy too, she wanted to live without fear she thought as she looked out the large window; watching the world move on without her. In her moments of contemplation she barely noticed the waitress place her food and drink on the table. "Excuse me" Claire called out causing the girl to abruptly stop and turn on her heel as if she done something wrong. "How did you land the job here?" She asked; the girl sighed a breath of relief.

"It's a family business; it's been here since this town was born." Claire nodded and gestured to the pictures on the wall. "So can you tell me anything about these pictures?" The girl smiled and nodded; leaving the register unmanned to sit with Claire to talk about her great-grandmother. It was a long and in-depth story about a French show-girl trying to live the life of a country girl.

Both Claire and the girl; Ella were having fits of laughter by the time she finished the story. They both calmed down before a thick French accented woman called for her. "Sorry, my mother needs me." Ella said before standing, "I've never spoken to you before, are you sure your birthday is the only reason why you are behaving this way?"

Claire was quiet as she finished off her pie before handing the dirty dishes to the girl and standing up herself. "I'm not sure really." Claire paused as she grabbed her coat putting it on as she thought. "I've been here for awhile now and I've made no friends or even attempted at being nice, maybe it's just that I don't want the world to move on without me. You know?" She said waiting for the waitress to reply.

"Sort of but maybe its cause you're lonely, I mean you don't come here with anyone else so I guess maybe your looking for something more…" The girl considered absentmindedly before waving her goodbyes as she returned to tending to the store. Claire considered that as she slowly walked to the front of the store unsure why she was so anxious and restless today.

As soon as she reached the glass door she noticed an object on the table she usually sat at. Her heart was suddenly beating a hundred miles a minute as her stomach did flips. Claire quickly rushed over to the table to finally see what the object was only to figure out it was two small cherry tree branches wrapped in pale… "Gabriel." She whispered as she quickly grabbed the gift up; looking around desperately.

Her mind rushed with thoughts as she whipped her head from side to side so hard that anyone watching would think she was going to get whiplash. Before there was anytime for real, rational thought Claire was running towards her home with gift in hand. Rushing and pushing past people and eventually trees Claire found herself as she pictured in the day-dream she had four years ago.

Her hand clenched around her battered gift as she panted; looking up at the large trees with the blooming pink blossoms that she had stared at for years. But this wasn't the time for staring and thinking about the trees or the blossoms; her hand spasmed around the gift her grip getting painfully tighter. There was something in the field that was calling her, she thought as she ran into the field; officially trespassing onto someone else's property.

Claire ran as fast as her feet could carry her, the trunks of the tall trees disorienting her before she stumbled and spun around; confused about where she was suppose to go. "Gabriel!" She shouted; desperately. She finally stopped in her plight as she stumbled sideways to lean against the closest tree trunk; quickly trying to fill her lungs with air.

Her eyes started to water as she tried to breathe, her vision started to spin before she finally seen what she was disparately looking for. She lurched headlong towards a blurry object unsure yet confident; her hand that was not holding the gift reaching forward, "Gabriel" She whispered as her vision became black. It wasn't until hours later Claire woke up; springing forward from her position under her coverlet.

"Gabriel" She whispered again, her eyes were unfocused as she looked around to notice that she was safely tucked in her bed instead of lying on the unforgiving ground under a cherry tree. Without thought Claire wormed her way out from under the covers, throwing her legs over the side of the bed before attempting to stand up. She successfully stood without much trouble but as soon as she took a few steps towards the open door she stumbled.

Claire squeaked in protest before bracing herself for impact but the impact never came. She felt herself stop in mid-air. She opened carefully before widening them in shock; her face was almost touching the red shag carpet. Claire heard herself suck in a breath of a prior to feeling herself being pulled backwards as if she was in reverse. Claire clamped her eyes shut uncertain of what was happening before she felt her weight being placed squarely on her feet.

"I leave you alone for only a minute and look what trouble you get into." A baritone voice casually spoke as soon as Claire opened her eyes to stare a person she hadn't seen in along time. "Gabriel" She whispered her voice thick with emotions; the tone almost made him take back his words before she seemed to recover. "If you came sooner maybe this wouldn't have happened at all." She snorted as she crossed her arms.

She opened her mouth to continue; her hand gesturing towards him but she became unbalanced again. Claire closed her eyes again, thinking that he was going use his telekinesis to balance her but instead she felt a warm body catching her and holding her in place. "Now is not the time to talk about this." He insisted but she shook her head, "You don't know how lonely I've been and if you were here…"

He scoffed at her self-centered accusation, "You don't think I know what it was to be lonely?" He asked before both of them realized how close they were. Claire noticed the sudden hesitation and felt him pulling away but before he could step away from her, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him roughly into a heated kiss.

The kiss was short lived though as Gabriel deliberately pulled away, taking a step back for good measure. "You are such a silly girl" He spoke with a smirk; Claire pouted with an annoyed glare.

"Girl? I'm hardly a girl" She snarled in irritation, "And yet your too livid and energetic to be a ninety-three-year-old woman." He said with his head cocked to the side; a playful grin on his lips; Claire rolled her eyes but a grin was on her lips as well. "And what are you then? Aren't you older than I am?" She asked with a quirk of her brow.

"I'm out of the ordinary and you're in need of rest" He said before he lifted her into his arms with ease and a grace that made Claire become muted with awe and embarrassment. He smirked at her expression and before she could protest; he gave her a smug look before he suddenly deposited her on the bed.

"You need your rest Claire; it seems that you've been doing more painting than sleeping as of late." He said before turning on his heel intending on leaving her to her rest but her hand caught his wrist before he could move away from the bed. "Please stay with me… just stay…"

He hesitated as he looked over his shoulder at her forlorn expression and sighed in defeat. "Alright… move over." He heaved another sigh as she happily did so in a mere few seconds. She rolled comfortably onto her side with one arm cradling her head and the other laying in front of her with her legs slightly curled up.

Claire noticed after she had gotten comfortable that Gabriel had mirrored her position. It was only a moment or so as they stared at each other but those moments were like eternity. The moments had been filled with silent thoughts of the past and the present about how neither of them has aged and yet they have changed so much.

Claire seemed to be the first to break from her thoughts and feelings "You finally found me…" She whispered her voice hoarse and her eyes misting over; her pent up emotions surfacing in the silence. A small genuine smile graced his lips before he reached out with the arm that wasn't cradling his head. He brushed a strand of hair from her eyes before his fingertips traced a path over her jaw and to her neck before pulling her closer.

His lips touched her forehead before he rested his chin onto of her head; the hand that pulled her to him wrapped itself around her slender form like a snake before he held her firmly to him. "Nothing could keep me from finding you, Claire. Haven't you figured that out yet?" He asked but it was meant as a statement and she knew it. She never doubted him because that was what he was good at over the first years of having his ability; finding people like her.

She sighed in contentment against the hollow of his throat before finding the peaceful slumber she had been lacking for the longest time. Even though they weren't related, even though there was so much negative history between the two of them; they were a family. It was definitely demented and misshapen but the bond that they shared was still true.

Claire knew that with all her heart even with all that time spent apart she'd fallen in love with the man she barely knew yet knew so well. She is forgiving and accepting all he was and maybe they'd survive the loneliness together as long as they were in each others arms.


End file.
